Theory
The Buteyko method is based on the concept that "hidden" or undiagnosed hyperventilation is the underlying cause of numerous medical conditions, including asthma. It is known that hyperventilation can lead to low carbon dioxide levels in the blood (or hypocapnea), which can subsequently lead to disturbances of the acid-base balance in the blood and lower tissue oxygen levels. Advocates of this method believe that the effects of chronic hyperventilation would have even wider effects than is commonly accepted. These effects include widespread spasms of the muscle in the airways (bronchospasm), disturbance of cell energy production via the Krebs cycle, as well as disturbance of numerous vital homeostatic chemical reactions in the body. The Buteyko method is a purported method of "retraining" the body's breathing pattern to correct for the presumed chronic hyperventilation and hypocapnea, and thereby treat or cure the body of these medical problems.
The Buteyko method is not widely supported in the medical community, in part due to the fact that research has not supported this theory that hyperventilation and hypocapnea causes disease, with one review noting that there is no convincing evidence to indicate that trying to change asthmatic's carbon dioxide level is either "desirable or achievable." Studies that have looked for evidence to corroborate this theory, such as looking at the carbon dioxide levels in practitioners of Buteyko, have not found this evidence, leading some to propose alternate theoretical pathways for this method to improve symptoms.
Read more about this topic: Buteyko Method
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